Mesudiye Village biography
1897 Ottoman-Greek War Cavalry (1878 Rumelia – 25 Jun 1952 Mesudiye)
Mesudiye's earliest documented soldier — served as cavalry in the 1897 Ottoman-Greek War, before the Karabağlar's 1907 migration to Karaman.
Born in Rumelia in 1878, Mehmet Cankara fought in the brief Ottoman-Greek War of 1897 as cavalry — at age 19. The Karabağlar community was still in Bulgarian Rumelia at the time; the family did not migrate to Anatolia until 1907.
Mehmet Cankara is the village's earliest documented soldier, predating the WWI veterans by nearly two decades. He died in Mesudiye in 1952, having lived to see the village he co-founded grow from 94 households to several hundred residents.
The Cankara family produced İbrahim Cankara (muhtar 1963), and was central to the 1980s Mesudiyespor football club roster (Halil Cankara in management).
1878, Rumeli – 25 June 1952, Mesudiye
Son of İbrahim
1897 Ottoman-Greek War
Cavalry
The Village's Oldest Soldier
While our ancestors were still in Rumeli, he took part in the 1897 Ottoman-Greek War as cavalry. He is the village's oldest known soldier.
Mehmet Cankara was born in Rumeli in 1878. His father is İbrahim. Called to arms even before the village of Mesudiye was founded, Mehmet carries the title of the village's oldest known soldier.
While our ancestors were still living in Rumeli, war broke out in 1897 between the Ottoman Empire and Greece. Mehmet Cankara took part in this war as cavalry. The war ended on 17 April 1897 in victory for the Ottoman Empire.
That victory went down in history as one of the last great military successes of the Ottomans. Mehmet Cankara, as a witness to and one of the heroes of this victory, holds a distinct place in the history of Mesudiye. The village had not even been founded yet — Mehmet was a soldier who had grown up and fought on the soil of Rumeli, among the muhacir (migrant) families who would later found Mesudiye.
Mehmet Cankara died in Mesudiye on 25 June 1952 at the age of 74. His life, stretching from 1897 to 1952, witnessed many historical periods, from the final era of the Ottoman Empire to the mature years of the Republic.
Birth: 1878, Rumeli
Death: 25 June 1952, Mesudiye
Father: İbrahim
War: 1897 Ottoman-Greek War
Unit: Cavalry
Outcome of the war: Ottoman victory, 17 April 1897